If Not For The Usga, We Couldn`t Hail Irwin

June 19, 1990|By Bob Verdi.

What this suggests, besides the fact that nobody around here works on Mondays anymore, is that the United States Golf Association does not lack totally for wisdom. The gents who wear blue blazers, gray slacks and frozen stares cut the rough, but not the heart from the nation`s premier tournament. Atop this body governing the U.S. Open exists a head.

With regular events on the American tour, plus two majors-the Masters and PGA Championship-a tie for first place is resolved via sudden death. The system is as cruel as it is convenient. But USGA types, being traditional old coots, cling to an arcane 18-hole playoff that destroys everything in sight except the extraordinary ebb and flow so special to the sport. What results is terrific theater. Applause, please.

``It`s fairer, and it befits an event of this stature,`` says Hale Irwin, winner of the 90th U.S. Open at Medinah Country Club. He likes the procedure so much, he takes it to the outer limits for the first time in history. Delayed a half hour Thursday by rain, the Open concludes only after a 91st hole Monday, 385 yards into second overtime. Irwin and Mike Donald go more rounds than Mike Tyson, but, hey, the Buick Westchester Classic begins Thursday. You can`t play forever.

Irwin is trying, though, and here`s another ribbon for USGA bonnets. There are 6,198 entries, a record, for this year`s Open, further proof our country is in the throes of severe golfaholism. Yet, to complete its field of 156, the USGA extends a special exemption to Irwin for the quaintest of reasons. He deserves one.

Twice an Open winner, Irwin feels honored and blessed. He enters Medinah`s clubhouse a week ago through the back door, but a week later arrives at his locker, reads a good-luck note from deposed champion Curtis Strange

(Donald also gets one.) and leaves for the drive to his suburban St. Louis home directly from the victory stand. ``Indescribably delicious,`` gushes Irwin.

This sort of story can happen in golf. Never are there more flat-bellied kids being churned out of college, all of whom can hit the ball miles. But one genre the young prodigies must never dismiss is the hardened-artery brigade. Raymond Floyd, previously the most ancient Open king, almost grabs April`s Masters at age 47. Monday, Irwin prevails at age 45. These revival sessions beget delightful chaos for golf, and the USGA shouldn`t think twice when pondering whether to bestow special exemptions on legends. An imminent decision could involve Jack Nicklaus, not that it merits debate.

If Irwin performs any other sport, especially in a tough town like Chicago, he`s a demigod. A defensive back in school, he plays golf with tenacity, as witnessed by his record. Irwin picks some hellacious spots to triumph-Pebble Beach, Butler National, Riviera, Pinehurst No. 2, Muirfield Village. Monday, he cracks a succulent 2-iron from 207 yards around trees to within six feet of the cup on No. 16, Medinah`s killer hole. He birdies, and Donald, an amiable and capable would-be, develops the notion that he won`t be. Donald should derive encouragement from his effort, and Medinah No. 3 declares itself in the end, too. Irwin wins with 7-under par for a marathon. Medinah is only the fifth par-72 Open course in a half century, which partly explains the number of scores below par. At 7,195 yards, a record length, Medinah cannot possibly rate a par of 71, and its par 5s are attacked by the pros. Nos. 5, 7, 10 and 14 are the only holes to yield subpar averages. The weather, until Round 4, also obliges the golfers. It is mild instead of wild. Softened greens reverberate throughout the course, and after the USGA shaves the rough, some of the fear is removed from the game. You don`t see typical Open snapshots of players hacking sideways with wedges from ankle-length grass in search of fairways. You do see players banging approaches from shady locales with uncommon confidence and success. Same as you see golfers swing from the heels at the tee. Did USGA barbers overreact? It would seem so.

But the champion need not apologize. In 1984, Irwin closes with 79 at Winged Foot, losing his lead and the Open to Fuzzy Zoeller. His father near death, Irwin is no mood for loud galleries, and they return the hostilities. But Monday, Irwin captivates thousands with his come-from-behind grit. The Open, splendidly organized and well-attended, rewards his good day at the office. Other offices in Chicago, however, suffer.